Emma Raducanu reaches last four at Queen’s after straight-sets win

Emma Raducanu battled into Saturday’s HSBC Championships semi-final after the King’s birthday flypast briefly interrupted her 6-3 7-5 victory over Kamilla Rakhimova at Queen’s.

Rain had plagued the second edition of these championships, forcing the British number one’s quarter-final with the Uzbekistani WTA world number 78 to be postponed from Friday evening.

Raducanu, up a set and a break, slipped but carried on, briefly sporting strapping over her left thigh, which she later removed.

The 23-year-old, who missed two and a half months of tennis with a post-viral illness earlier this season, has bounced back from a disappointing first-round exit at the French Open to match her best WTA Tour-level result on grass.

She will play American Iva Jovic later on Saturday.

That came when she reached the semi-final at Nottingham in 2024, a tournament won by compatriot Katie Boulter, who faces Croatian Donna Vekic on Saturday afternoon for a place in Sunday’s final.

It also matched her career-best result at a WTA 500 event, her semi-final run at Washington 2025.

Raducanu opened with an ace, then dug herself out of trouble after three double-faults to hold her serve, before breaking her opponent’s at the first time of asking.

Rakhimova broke back immediately, then brought the set level at two games apiece.

Raducanu was up 40-0 in the fifth game when it was paused for about five minutes for the flypast, as a series of aircraft thundered overhead.

The serving Briton initially looked baffled then started to smile, breaking into a laugh along with the crowd as her serve was interrupted once again.

The confusion continued, the umpire at one point having informed those curious that “it’s definitely going to be the Red Arrows at some point”